COVID's cognitive costs? Some patients' brains may age 10 years

FILE PHOTO: Dr. Vahram Haroutunian holds a human brain in a brain bank in the Bronx borough of New York City, New York, U.S. June 28, 2017. Picture taken June 28, 2017. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - People recovering from COVID-19 may suffer significant brain function impacts, with the worst cases of the infection linked to mental decline equivalent to the brain ageing by 10 years, researchers warned on Tuesday.

A non-peer-reviewed study of more than 84,000 people, led by Adam Hampshire, a doctor at Imperial College London, found that in some severe cases, coronavirus infection is linked to substantial cognitive deficits for months.